Summary

Rotator cuff disease is the most common cause of shoulder pain in primary care (Ostor et al. 2005) and includes diagnoses such as bursitis, impingement, and rotator cuff tendinosis. Several studies featured in the Academy Blog have described how effective TheraBand exercises are in treating shoulder conditions, particularly when combined with manual therapy.

Researchers in Australia completed an extensive study on patients with rotator cuff disease over 3 ½ years and published their findings in the British Medical Journal. 120 patients in Melbourne meeting eligibility criteria were randomly assigned to either a home exercise and manual therapy or a placebo-controlled group receiving only sham ultrasound. 14 experienced physiotherapists at 12 centers were trained to provide both interventions.

The intervention program was published in a separate paper in 2007. The exercise and manual therapy group received 10 sessions of individualized standard treatment over 10 weeks including a twice-daily home exercise program with TheraBand exercise bands. At the end of the first 10 weeks, there was no significant difference in pain or function between the experimental and control groups; they both significantly improved.

They continued the home exercise each day for 12 weeks after the initial 10 visits. After 22 weeks, the exercise and manual therapy group had significantly greater improvement in shoulder pain and disability than the control group. The researchers concluded that the benefits of therapeutic exercise may take several months before they are evident.

This was a very strong study in its design, particularly based on its sample size, study length, statistical power, and external validity by using multiple therapists to perform the intervention. The exercise and manual therapy group had a high retention rate as well 93%). The positive longer-term outcomes of this well-designed study including TheraBand exercise bands support its standard use in therapeutic exercise programs for rotator cuff patients.

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